Rise and Fall (Rewritten)
by Toxic-Tears-123
Summary: No life, no memories, no past, and no future. The perfect tool. The perfect pawn. Life in Haven isn't easy for anyone but for some it can be worse. Maybe following the blonde guy with the orange rodent will lead her in the right direction? Rewritten!
1. Fly on the Wall

**Summary: No life, no memories, no past, and no future. The perfect tool. The perfect pawn. Life in Haven isn't easy for anyone but for some it's worse than others. Maybe following the blonde guy and his rodent will lead her in the right direction? Rewritten!**

* * *

_**Rise and Fall**_

**Chapter 1: Fly On the Wall**

I had just walked out of the Power Station after delivering a few things from the Underground when it happened. There was a moment when time seemed to go in slow motion and everything else with it. A loud and sudden crack of thunder ripped through the air and a bright light shot from the sky. Multiple people stopped to watch the streak of light dash across the sky before hitting somewhere in the Industrial Section of the city.

I furrowed my eyebrows as I looked in that direction. Deciding to investigate this strange occurrence I quickly pulled my long, brown hair back before running for the nearest zoomer. With practiced ease, I swung my leg over the seat and began heading in the direction the bright light had landed.

. . .

**Two years earlier… **

_Green eyes began to slowly slide open and having been caked with sand made the process that much more difficult. The little girl began to rub her eyes to rid herself of irritating sensation. She sat up only to be swept up by dizziness and fall back into the hot sand. She swallowed, suddenly realizing how dry her throat and mouth were. With nothing else to do her eyes began sliding shut again as she was taken over by unconsciousness. _

_When she came to again it was to the feeling of moisture on her lips. The brunette's eyes snapped opened she leaned towards the source of the water. A man in his twenties was hovering over her with a wet rag dripping into her mouth. He had brown hair that was pulled away from his face in dreadlocks allowing for full few of the intricate tattoos that covered his chiseled face as well as icy blue eyes. The girl snatched the rag from the man and squeezed the rest of the water into her mouth. _

_She looked around the room curiously. It was large with grey walls and many white beds and not much else. _

"_Good, you're awake," he stated as one might state the time of day. "We found you out in the pumping station. What were you doing out there?"_

_With a few seconds of deep thought to girl finally answered, "I don't know."_

"_How do you not know? You were outside the city walls?" the tattooed man asked briskly. "Did you get away from your parents? Though at your age you should know better than to ever step foot outside the city."_

_The girl looked up at him with wide eyes, "How old am I?"_

_The man looked shocked, "You don't know?"_

"_I just remember waking up with sand in my eyes and being real thirsty and tired," she stated with green eyes cast downwards. _

_The man stood from her bedside revealing red armor, "I'm going to go get a doctor."_

_With a sad nod the young girl began staring down at her hands folded in her lap. _

. . .

I knew when I was getting close due to the amount of people that were running or driving in the opposite direction. The Industrial Section of the city looked just like it sounded. Large factories were lined back to back, side to side, and some even sat on top of others. Large walkways allowed people to go up to the higher section of factories. Everything was grey; the buildings, the streets, the smoke. The only thing distinguishing the different buildings were their names hanging from a pole that jutted from the top.

Up on the walkway just ahead seemed to be the epicenter of the minor chaos. I managed to dodge the other oncoming traffic to see exactly where the incident took place. A young boy, probably 15 which wasn't much older than myself, stood looking dazed and confused. He had blonde and green hair that shot straight up and his clothing was strange; a blue sleeveless shirt, khakis, and wrappings around his feet and hands.

He looked in my direction and I saw his blue eyes were widened in curiosity. As he looked around an orange rodent stood up next to him. It almost looked like the rodent was talking to the boy but I couldn't be sure from this distance.

I climbed off the zoomer and headed up the ramp to get a closer look. I was almost to the blonde when a group of men in red armor began approaching him from the opposite direction. Not wanting to be seen, I ducked between two buildings to watch.

Leading the group of Krimzon Guards was none other than Commander Erol.

I shuddered involuntarily and pressed my back against the wall. Knowing that the red headed man hadn't seen me I took a deep breath and peered around the corner once again.

"There he is. Move in," the guard closest to the commander stated. "Step away from the animal."

The boy and the rodent looked both shocked and scared. The orange animal panicked and ran in the between the commander's legs.

"Forget the rat," Errol snapped at the guard who had stepped away to follow it. "The Baron wants him."

The boy gulped but didn't say a word.

"We've been waiting for you," the man stated, golden eyes gleaming as another guard brought the butt of his gun down on the boy's head.

The blonde dropped like a stone and the guard quickly surrounded him before slapping cuffs around his wrists.

"Don't worry, Jak! I'll save ya before you know it!" the rodent shouted before scurrying off.

I was stunned for a second that the animal could actually speak, but didn't have much time to ponder as the guards picked up the boy, Jak, and began carrying him in my direction. I sucked in a breath before quickly moving deeper into the alley where I was sure they wouldn't see me. They passed, not even looking in my direction. I looked out of the alley and watched as the blue eyed boy was loaded into the back of a cruiser and taken away to the Fortress.

. . .

After the coast was clear, I rushed back to the Underground to tell Torn what I'd seen. We had only just recently started living there about a month ago. Most of the other members had their own living places but the Shadow had allowed us to stay in the small building that made up the resistance headquarters against the Baron Praxis.

The building was mostly a just a room with four bunks, two against each wall, with a table and shelves in the back. Posters of the Baron and Errol hung on the wall with vulgar writing across them in red. A furnace burned in the corner warmed the room but filled the ceiling with smoke.

The room was a lot warmer than it had been outside so I pulled the red scarf away from my neck and pulled the sweater over my head before throwing them both on the bunk nearby.

Ever present in his spot behind the desk, Torn looked up and grunted, the only acknowledgement that he'd noticed my entrance.

"You been out recently?" I asked running to jump on the desk.

I crossed my legs and spun around so that I was sitting facing him.

"Just got back. Why?" he grumbled, not bothering to look up from his paper work.

"Did you see that bright light?"

He looked up at that, "Yes."

"Well I went to check it out…"

His eyes widened and I could tell he was angry, "Why the hell would you do that? The KG would be swarming the place! Do you want to go back to prison?"

My eyes widened as I looked at the man scared, "Erol didn't see me…"

The moment the name passed my lips I knew I'd messed up.

"Erol was there?!" the brunette snapped. "Do you know what would have happened if he'd seen you? You would be back in the chair before nightfall!"

I gulped and stared at Torn.

He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, "Jenny, you should know better. Do you listen to anything I tell you?"

"I'm sorry but I was curious," I stated, wringing my hands nervously in my lap. "Besides I thought the boy might want to join us."

"There was a kid there?" Torn asked.

I nodded, "Yeah, he wasn't much older than me and Erol said that they'd been waiting for him. Do you think they'll do to him what they did to me?"

"There's no way to know for sure but it's a possibility."

I looked down at my hands frowning, "I can't wait till I'm strong enough to fight the Baron myself."

Torn thought for a second on what I'd said before turning back to his reports. I sat twiddling with my hair or nails reluctant to leave after I'd made him so angry. Without lifting his head his eyes glanced up at me.

"You better get moving, squirt, if you plan on finishing those errands and your chores before midnight," he stated and returned to his work.

I nodded before quickly jumping off the table to go grab the rest of the packages that needed to be delivered. I pulled my sweater back over my head and wrapped the red scarf around my neck then pulled it up to cover my face. I gave one last look over my shoulder at Torn before heading out.

. . .

**Two years earlier… **

_When Torn returned to the young girl with the doctor she was sitting in the same position as when he had left. She looked up with wide confused eyes as the doctor began examining her. The old man paid a lot of attention to her head. He shined a bright light into her eyes and checked other vital signs before standing up and turning to Torn._

"_She's definitely showing signs of a concussion and I would assume she has amnesia," the doctor stated._

"_Will she be able to regain her memory?" Torn asked. _

_The doctor looked thoughtful, "It's very possible but only time will tell. I suggest taking her someplace safe for the time being where she can recover from the concussion and go from there. If she remembers, great, if not she shouldn't have a problem integrating back into normal society."_

_The commander nodded, and the doctor left leaving him alone with a twelve year old. Or at least he assumed she was twelve. _

. . .

After the young green eyed girl had left Torn sat against the wall and thought. A bright light appearing suddenly in the sky, a strange looking kid showing up. It sounded much like when he'd found Jenny.

After tracking down the sight of where the bright light had landed and only finding a little girl with amnesia the guards thought that maybe it had been lightning and it had struck her. But Torn wasn't completely convinced. The light hadn't looked like lightning and she definitely didn't show any signs electrocution just head trauma.

But he'd let it go after a while and just waited for the day that she would remember how she'd ended up in the pumping station that day.

. . .

I stopped the zoomer in front of a large building in the port. Looking up I saw the giant, glowing hip hog sitting on the roof. I pulled the package from the sack on the back of the zoomer before climbing off. The door didn't slid open when I reached stopped in front of it. My eyebrows furrowed as I frowned in frustration.

Next to the door was a small button and I reached forward to press it. A few seconds later I heard a click of a speaker coming on above me.

"_Who is it?_" a deep voice asked.

I jumped slightly at the voice, "Jenny. Torn sent me."

The door slid open immediately as the ex-commander's name passed my lips. Just inside the door stood a tall, built, dark skinned man with only one eye. He wore thick armor made mostly from metal heads. In his hands was a large gun with a purple ammo cartridge sticking out the top and a metal head skull on the end.

The man looked intimidating at first before smiling widely at me, "Hey there, little cherry. Torn send you to deliver the goods?"

I couldn't help but smile. Sig could make just about anyone smile… except for maybe Torn and his boss, Krew.

Speaking of the devil, the fat man himself emerged from the back room of the bar. Krew was so large that long ago he had been placed in a floating chair that carried him everywhere (how it hadn't broke already, I had no clue). He ran the bar, the Hip Hog Heaven Saloon, but also had dealings with the Baron which he passed on to the Underground for a fee. And today was payday.

"Here's your payment," I said tossing the package up to Krew, "ten ounces of rare eco ore."

A buzzer went off near the door. That must have been what the button was for. Sig went over to a small speaker on the wall and pressed a button.

"Who is it? Were closed," the man stated harshly.

"_The KG, now open up!_"

Sig looked wide eyed back at me before nodding to the bar. I dashed towards it and ducked under the lower shelf before pulling the curtain that hung across it passed my body so they wouldn't see my reflection in the mirror.

I heard the door open and the familiar sound of heavy boots. I bit my lip trying to keep my breathing low as the group of KG approached the bar. I peeked through the crack in the curtain and saw the reflection of an easily recognizable red head.

Erol, whom I'd seen maybe thirty minutes ago carting that poor boy to the Fortress. There were two other guards with him both of which had removed their helmets after coming inside. Erol and Krew walked away talking in low voices while the two guard sat down at the bar. I could just barely see their eyes over the top of the counter.

"Would you boys like a drink?" Sig asked stepping behind the bar.

"Can't drink on the job," one stated.

The other was looking around the bar leisurely before his eyes fell just about where my feet were. I looked down seeing that the curtain wasn't covering up my boots. I gulped as the man stood and began making his way around the counter. I quickly slipped the boots off my feet before pulling myself into a ball.

A hand reached in and pulled the boots out from under the shelf.

"What's this doing here?" the guard asked Sig.

"That's where we keep lost and found," he stated calmly. "Why someone left some shoes here is beyond me though."

The guard chcukled, "Most have been too drunk to care that they were leaving barefoot."

The man dropped the boots and kicked them under the shelf. I almost sighed in relief.

* * *

**A/N: Very different start than the original Rise and Fall, huh? But I know exactly where I'm going with this!**

**Anyways hope you like! **

**AND DON'T KILL ME FOR STARTING OVER…. again…. **


	2. The World Is Ugly

_**Rise and Fall**_

**Chapter 2: The World Is Ugly**

As soon as the guards left, I crawled out of the cramped hiding spot and began to pull my boots back on. Sig sighed in relief leaning over the bar and Krew remained in the back of the bar.

"Well that was a close call," Sig laughed, smirking down at me.

I rolled my eyes and stood, "Yeah, I better get going."

"See ya, chili pepper," the tall man stated as I slipped out into the street.

I took a quick look around to make sure that any guards in the area didn't see me exit the bar. I sighed in relief, my heart still pounding in my chest as I stepped away from the bar and into the crowded streets. I maneuvered easily between the citizens as I headed for the industrial section. It was late afternoon meaning most workers would be leaving the factories and heading for their homes or the bars in the port so when I reached the industrial section there weren't near as many people in the streets.

I looked down as I continued to walk rubbing my forehead. My breath was coming out harshly and my pulse still hammered in my ears as I rounded a corner.

Before hitting something hard and falling on my ass.

"Watch it!" a boy's voice snapped.

I looked up and glared finding myself looking up at a tall teenager with jet black hair with tan skin. Dark eyes narrowed as they looked down at me and thin lips began to form a smirk. The boy's sleeveless, green shirt was tight against his muscled chest and dark, baggy cargo shorts were held up by a pistol holder attached around his hips. A hand was held out before me and I quickly knocked it away before pushing myself off the ground.

I strode past him intent on heading straight for the hideout. The encounter left my mind quickly as my thoughts began racing again from the close encounter with the KG at the Hip Hog. Seeing Erol again brought back terrible memories.

. . .

**Two years earlier…**

_The brunette commander took the young girl back to the palace. He had spoken to Ashelin, the baron's daughter and one of the few women that were in the guard, about what to do with the girl. _

_As they walked through the vast halls, Torn looked down at her and asked, "So do you remember your name?"_

_The green eyed girl thought for a few seconds before looking up, "It's Jenny… I think."_

"_Jenny," Torn stated. "Never heard that one before."_

"_Well I've never heard of someone called Torn before," Jenny snapped but it lost all effect of being intimidating by her small size and high pitched voice._

"_Hmmph."_

_Torn stopped in front of a large set of doors and held one open for Jenny. Inside was a large throne room. The semi-circle room took up the majority of the upper most floor of the palace. At the back of the room a large window looked out over the north-eastern wall while the windows out in the hall gazed out over the housing district. Three steps led up to a raised platform led up to a single throne. _

_Torn frowned, remembering when his mom, brother, and himself had been summoned to the palace by the former King the day his father died. He was about the same age as the girl trailing along behind him now. Then there had been two thrones. _

_The commander and been looking for Ashelin who was standing just at the bottom of the steps. Her father, Baron Praxis stood on the first step looking down at the young woman as they spoke. _

_The Baron turned to look at Torn and the brunette snapped to attention. The man nodded in dismissal as he looked down at the young girl who was doing her best to hide behind Torn. Her wide green eyes stared up at his one good eye and the other mechanical red one. A fourth of his face and part of his ear had been damaged in an explosion demanding that the injured part be replaced with metal. _

"_Why have you brought this brat into the palace?" the Baron questioned, looking back to the commander. _

"_Sorry, sir, but the bright light you sent us to investigate? All we found was this girl," Torn stated. "She doesn't remember anything other than her name."_

_The man looked thoughtful for a moment, "Very well. Leave her here and we'll try to find her parents but you should get back to work."_

"_Yes, sir."_

_Torn turned to go but felt the girl grip his shirt, "Don't go."_

_The man looked down at her with icy blue eyes before prying her fingers from him, "You'll be fine. You'll be home before ya know it."_

. . .

Torn shook his head as he attempted to sort through the piles of reports scattering the table. He sighed quietly looking over at the clock hanging sitting on the shelf to his left. His eyes furrowed together and he frowned. Jenny had been gone a long time. A lot longer than it should have taken to deliver the package and get back. He was debating on whether to go out to look for her when the door slid open and the girl stumbled into the Hideout.

"Where the hell have you been?" he asked, his voice harsh.

The girl was obviously trying to control her breathing as she began to explain, "KG showed up while I was making the drop. One almost found me… Erol was with them."

Torn frowned as the girl sunk to her knees on the floor her breath coming out faster and harder. As the ex-commander moved towards the girl her eyes became dilated and terrified. A sweat broke out across her forehead as green eyes darted around the room nervously.

She was having a panic attack.

Torn gripped her shoulder tightly, "Jenny, look at me."

When she didn't he shook her roughly. Her eyes quickly focused on him.

"Snap out of it, squirt. He didn't catch you and you're not going back to prison," he stated.

Jenny's breathing began to calm and the scared look left her eyes. She nodded and began to stand. Torn stood back, making sure she wasn't going to fall before returning to his desk. The brunette removed her boots, belts, and socks and placed them neatly underneath the bunk before crawling under the covers.

Torn looked up from his work half an hour later and saw her back facing him, her body rising and falling slowly with her breathing.

. . .

**6 months earlier…**

_Torn was pissed. _

_It had been a suicide mission… A complete disaster! And it was all thanks to Baron Praxis. Torn had been telling him that they needed to reinforce the north eastern wall behind the palace for over a year and he completely pushed him aside, deciding to focus his attention on the building of the new palace in the center of the city. Three days ago the metal heads had broken through the wall and the shield that protected the city. With each day that passed they pushed the guards further into the city claiming first the palace and slowly the rest of the living area surrounding it. Without warning the Baron shut down the shield and switched its perimeter to exclude the area that had been conquered leaving hundreds of citizens and soldiers to die. _

_If it wasn't for the Shadow, Torn would be dead. _

_The strange, green man had managed to shield the people in the area using Green Eco. The Shadow had been a wanted criminal for as long as Praxis had been in power. It seemed as soon as Baron Praxis started running things the Shadow popped up out of nowhere and started the Underground; a resistance group fully devoted to bring down Praxis. _

_They hadn't done much then raid a few KG cargo ships and disrupt smaller missions until the past year when the death toll from the metal head war had risen. As if the KG didn't have enough to worry about with the metal heads then they started to have to take the Underground seriously. They were fighting a war with two fronts. _

_It was then that Erol and Ashelin had become Commanders. Erol and Torn were tasked with keeping on top of the metal head threat while Ashelin was put in charge of the Underground. _

_Until today Torn had thought of the Underground and their leader, the Shadow, as just another annoying threat that the KG didn't have the time or resources to deal with. But after the strange, green, tree-hugger-looking man approached him he began to look at things differently. _

_Now he considered changing sides. _

_The Shadow had offered to meet with him again should he decide to leave the guard. Torn thought that the man was a little off his rocker for trusting a KG commander. Torn could easily plan this meeting with the Underground leader and set up an ambush. _

_But then again he was considering the man's offer._

_Torn took a deep breath deciding to sleep on it and think about it for a few days. If he joined the Underground he would be turning his back completely on the guard and become a traitor. But he'd come to realize that Baron Praxis was a selfish, manipulative, and vile man. He left a lot of innocent, defenseless people to die today and there was no excuse for it. _

_As the brunette rounded the corner he bumped into another guard that had been carrying boxes full of files. Torn grunted as the files spread across the floor and the young guard immediately dropped to his knees to pick them up. _

_The commander knelt down as well. Picking up a folder he recognized them as prisoner's files. But he immediately noticed that these files were a little different. Each was stamped with DWP. Torn didn't think much of it until he spotted a familiar face on one of the pictures attached to the front of the files. _

_Scared green eyes looked towards the camera. Brown hair hung down passed the girl's shoulders. Torn hadn't seen the girl in two years. _

_It was Jenny. _

_Torn quickly slipped the file in with those that he'd been carrying and began stuffing the rest back into the box. The guard didn't notice but looked up seemingly relieved that Torn wasn't paying too much attention to the files. Once the files were back in the boxes the soldier saluted quickly before rushing off again. _

_Torn grabbed up his things and headed to his room. Once inside, he threw his things on the bed before grabbing the file with Jenny's picture. _

_The tab of the file read 'DWP-005'. Torn opened the manila folder and quickly began scanning its contents. It showed tables of injection times, amounts, and results. The brunette's eyebrows narrowed as he read what they'd been injecting her with; Dark Eco. _

_Each month another picture was taken. The girl grew taller and quickly lost the baby fat she'd had when he first met her. Her skin grew paler and her eyes became dull. _

_Torn flipped back to the starting pages and began reading. The more he read the more he wanted to leave the guard right then and there. But he had one more thing to do before he ditched the KG for good. He felt responsible for the young girl's fate. _

. . .

I woke up late the next morning. It was a rare occurrence when Torn actually let me sleep in. I yawned loudly, my jaw cracking in the process, as I stretched.

"Bout time you got up," Torn grumbled. "You have stuff to deliver. That box needs to get to the safe house in the port."

I nodded, quickly pulling on my boots and other belongings. I yawned once or twice before rubbing my eyes. I made my way over to the stack of boxes and grabbed the one off the top.

As I was leaving I looked over my shoulder and smiled at Torn, "Thanks."

I didn't go into any details because Torn would know that I was thanking him for the night before. He was hard man and didn't like mushy shit very much. All I got from him in response was a grunt.

I laughed quietly to myself, shaking my head, as I headed out to the zoomer parked outside. I looked at the zoomer and pursed my lips. It was nice out so I decided to forego the zoomer and just walk to the safe house.

It was still pretty early for a weekend and there weren't too many citizen roaming the streets. The guards still patrolled, however.

After Torn first broke me out of prison, I didn't want to go outside for fear of the guards recognizing me and putting me back in the DWP. The ex-commander still had contact within the KG and discovered that only ten guards actually knew about the program aside from Baron Praxis, Erol, and a doctor and scientist. Said guards rarely went out on patrol because they mostly worked inside the fortress guarding the DWP room and helping with the experiments.

. . .

**5 months earlier…**

_Torn set the charges underneath the tank before crawling out from under the large machine where a bomb was set to go off in five minutes. He knew he'd have to move quickly to make it to the holding cells before it went off. It wasn't a destructive enough bomb to do much damage; maybe just destroy the tank and catch a few supplies on fire. It was really just going to be a distraction. _

_The soon to be ex-commander of the KG had been planning his escape for a month. Most of that time had been spent looking for where Jenny was being held and also getting supplies ready for their getaway. He had managed to speak to her once. She hadn't looked good. She was thin and pale and the insides of her arms were bruised from multiple injections. The young girl had looked hopeless until she saw Torn's face through the bars._

_Torn blamed himself in a way for her state of being. He thought he should have known what was going on sooner. And he'd been the one to bring her right to the Baron. _

_Jenny, however, seeing a familiar, and somewhat friendly, face she'd lit up and smiled widely at the brunette. She'd put a lot of faith in him. _

_Torn had just reached the room where Jenny was being held when the bomb went out. The blast was easily heard from where he was and soon the few guards on duty in the area were rushing out the door to see where the blast had come from. _

_The door swung wide as the last of the guards ran through allowing Torn to slip inside before it shut and locked again. He went straight to Jenny's cell and began entering the code into the keypad which he'd acquired thanks to some hacking from the Power Station operator, Vin. _

_The door slid opened and Torn expected to be met with the same cheerful girl he'd seen a few days ago. Instead he was met with silence. _

_Torn looked into the cell and found the brunette passed out on a thin mattress. He figured the noise would have woken her but she didn't stir. _

"_Jenny, it's time to go," he stated and when she didn't move he walked over to her and nudged her with his foot. "Get up."_

_But she didn't budge. Torn knelt next to her and turned her to face him. The lack of weight and effort it took to move her worried the man for a moment. He shook her gently trying to get her to wake. Her skin felt hot under his touch. _

"_Torn?" she mumbled, her eyes opening a fraction. "Torn, I'm so tired. Leave me alone."_

_Sick or not they were leaving right then. Torn decided he would worry about her fever once they were out of immediate danger._

* * *

**A/N: Sorry this took so long! Please forgive me!**

**Also I added a drawling of Jenny on Deviantart. My username is the same for DA as it is for !**

**Hope ya'll enjoyed the chapter! Hopefully the next one will be up sooner!**


	3. Vindicated

_**Rise and Fall**_

**Chapter 3: Vindicated **

I was half way to my destination when I realized that someone was following me.

At first I thought it was merely coincidence that the guard's patrol was the same direction that I was traveling. I tried not to panic. I decided to make a detour that would inevitably lead back to where I was. If the guard was still behind me then, I was definitely being followed.

After a few minutes, the man began getting closer. I walked a little faster trying to find a way to bolt before the man caught me. I kept the little package clutched to my chest tightly and took deep breathes. This week was not my week.

Not paying attention to where I was going I ended up walking into a corner in the industrial section with the only exit being blocked by the KG. I sucked in a deep breath as the man approached me.

"Where are you headed so early this morning?" the guard asked none too nicely as he pulled off his helmet.

I gulped, "I was headed to see my grandpa. I thought this was where he lived but he just moved and I couldn't remember if I was supposed to go left or right once I passed the Power Station."

It seemed like a good enough lie but the guard looked dubious, "What's in that package?"

He reached for the parcel in my arms and I panicked.

I side stepped his reaching arm and dashed pasted him before he knew what was happening. As soon as I'd done it I knew I'd made a huge mistake. I had no clue what was in the package but I assumed it couldn't be too important if Torn was having me deliver it. The more important stuff he delivered himself.

I rounded the corner and felt an arm grip my wrist and pull me quickly into an alley. I sucked in a breath to scream but a hand clamped down over my lips before I had the chance. I was held tight against a boy's body by his other arm wrapped firmly around my waist. I froze, my eyes scanning the street I'd just been pulled from.

The guard ran by not bothering to look down the alley.

I let the breath I'd been holding blow out my nose. I wiggled trying to break free of the boy that was holding me.

"If I let go do you promise not to scream?" he asked and his voice sounded slightly familiar.

I nodded and sure enough the boy released me. I took a step away from him before turning to look. It was the boy that I'd run into the day before. He smirked as I recognized him.

"Thanks, I guess," I stated, scratching the back of my head.

"Sure thing," he stated holding out a hand. "The name's Aron."

I shook his hand hesitantly, "Jenny."

"See ya around," he stated as if he were sure we'd run into each other again.

"Yeah, okay," I stated before taking off towards my destination again. This time I grabbed a zoomer.

. . .

**4 months earlier…**

_In the weeks following their escape, Jenny hadn't gotten any better. In fact, she was getting worse by the day. At first she seemed to be getting better once he'd gotten her to the safe house designated to him by the Shadow. But she started sleeping more and it was becoming harder to wake her. Even when she was awake she was half delirious from the fever. _

_Torn feared she wouldn't last another month. _

_The now ex-commander grunted in dissatisfaction grabbing his hoodie off the back of the couch. The Shadow had finally summoned him for a meeting out in Haven Forest. He gave one last look over his shoulder at the small girl shivering under the many layers of covers he placed over her before throwing his hood up and stepping out of the small apartment. _

. . .

I handed over the box to the Underground member at the port safe house. He gave me a quick nod before going back inside. As I turned to head back towards the Hideout someone ran up beside me, draping their arm around my shoulders.

"What the hell?!" I shouted, as I was knocked off balance and looked up to see Aron. "Did you follow me?"

"So what if I did, sweetheart?" he laughed, keeping his arm around me as I straightened up.

I knocked his arm away from me and began walking away. I had barely made it a couple steps when the black haired boy grabbed my wrist. I snapped around to glare at him but he only gave me a charming smirk.

"You're part of the Underground aren't you?" he asked.

My eyes widened, "Shut up, you idiot! I don't know how you know but I'd prefer if half of Haven didn't as well!"

"Hun, there's no one around," he stated with a laugh while running a hand through his short, black hair. "Besides, I'd like to join."

At that I raised an eyebrow at him giving him an inquisitive look.

He furrowed his eyebrows at me and frowned, "What?"

"You think you can just show up and ask to join?" I chuckled. "It doesn't work like that. Besides I don't think your parents would like that too much."

"My parents died in the takeover," he stated looking down. "They were loyal to Damas."

I gasped lightly, "Oh… I…"

He waved his hand, "It's alright. You didn't know. Besides how did you manage to join?"

"Well I'm not much of a member. Just an errand girl really," I stated, rubbing the back of my head. "But I was kinda just a package deal with someone the Shadow wanted to join. But maybe I can talk to him, see if he'd be interested in you joining."

Aron smiled lightly, "Thanks. Here's my comm. number."

I took the small piece of paper he was holding out, "Well see you around. And this time don't follow me."

With a laugh the dark eyed boy turned and walked away.

. . .

**Four months earlier…**

_Torn sat with his legs crossed in front of the Shadow, who had been sitting under a large tree meditating when the ex-commander had arrived at the destination for the meeting. _

"_Torn, thank you for coming on such a short notice," the small, green man stated. "I'm terribly sorry for not making contact sooner."_

"_It's fine," Torn grunted. "So why did you want to see me?"_

"_Well as you are well aware the Underground has been progressing in our fight against the Baron," the Shadow said. "But if we are ever going to win this fight we'll need a strategist. With your previous rank and knowledge of the KG you make the ideal candidate."_

"_Okay."_

_The Shadow chuckled, "So that's it? I thought I'd have to try and convince you a little more."_

_Torn shook his head, "I've seen what Praxis is capable of and he's needs to be stopped."_

_The Shadow nodded his head with a solemn look, "Well we both agree there. I'd like you to come by the Hideout tomorrow to meet the other members. In the meantime is there anything I can do for you?"_

"_You're a healer right?" Torn questioned and the man nodded. "Well there's this girl that I brought with me when I left. She'd been in prison for a couple years but now she's really sick."_

"_I would be glad to stop by a take a look at her," the green man said. "What was a girl doing in prison?"_

_Torn gritted his teeth, "They were experimenting on her with dark eco."_

"_By the precursors," the Shadow stated. "Well if it's fine with you I'd like to see her right away."_

. . .

**The Fortress**

"Bring in the new test subject," the red-haired man ordered of the guard.

With a salute, the man snapped to obey. He walked over the occupied cell, quickly punching in the key code. When the door slid open he stepped inside grabbing the young boy inside by the scruff of his shirt. The blonde boy was dragged from the cell over to the metal chair in the center of the room. With fearful, wide, blue eyes the youth was strapped to the chair.

A man with a white coat and clipboard stepped up to the control panel pushing various buttons, "As discussed earlier, we've infused the dark eco into an electrical shock instead of using the previous method of injecting raw eco into the veins."

Baron Praxis gave a nod, "Then let's begin."

The scientist nodded, slowing lifting up the lever and powering on the machine. The boy watched as a large pointed objected descended from above him stopping half a foot above his forehead.

When the first currents hit him, his back arched off the chair as his mouth opened and he began to scream.

. . .

**Four months earlier…**

_The Shadow shook his head in displeasure as he examined the young girl. She could have only been 14 or 15 at the most. Her body was covered in sweat from the fever and he noticed the scars across her arms and legs. Her skin was pale and the circles around her eyes were as dark as bruises. _

"_And you say she was injected with dark eco?" the Shadow asked. _

_Torn nodded as he leaned against the wall, "At least once a day except for the week prior to our escape. They stopped the experiments."_

_The green man sighed, "It would seem her sickness is like that of an addict's who has stop taken a drug completely. If not weaned off it slowly they can become very sick. I'm afraid we'll have to keep injecting her with dark eco."_

"_But won't that kill her?" Torn questioned, his eyebrows pulling together. _

"_She's survived two years of it," the Shadow stated. "The dark eco could keep her alive for a few months or a few years. I've never dealt with this sort of thing before so I can't give you a straight answer. But without the eco she will die within the week. It's the best recommendation I can give until I've had more time to look into it." _

_Torn grunted as he rubbed his forehead in discontent. _

. . .

Torn was in his typical place hovering over reports when I returned from the port. He looked up and upon seeing it was I returned to his work.

"Hey, Torn," I began, leaning against one of the bunks. "When I was heading to the port a guard tried to capture me."

The brunette grunted, "Well he obviously didn't so what' so important?"

"A guy helped me get away," I sighed running a hand through my hair. "Anyways he wants to join the Underground."

Torn looked up and raised an eyebrow at me, "And do you think he could be of use?"

"I'm not really sure but he did help me get away from the guard," I informed with a shrug. "It couldn't hurt to look into him. The movement really does need some new recruits."

The brunette rubbed his chin as he spoke, "Well were going to meet another recruit tomorrow at the Hip Hog. Tell him to meet us there at 9."

I nodded and pulled out my comm. to send a message to Aron.

. . .

**The Palace**

Baron Praxis was pacing the floor in front of his throne. He did this often when he thought about the future. The man paused for a moment to stare out of the large window that made up the back wall behind the large staircase leading to the throne.

The room itself was an ingenious design. The throne room made up half of the uppermost floor. The other half was occupied by a variety of other rooms, including his personal office. The central most point was the elevator. The whole floor spun around to view Haven City. What better way to show your superiority over people than having a throne room that could look out over the whole city?

The Baron stopped pondering over the room and returned back to his previous train of thought; the boy that had been brought in by Commander Erol. The boy definitely wasn't what he was expecting. He had been expecting exactly what that old coot had showed him; an average height young man with long hair and angry blue eyes. What he had got was what must have been a younger version. He sighed resigned to the fact that he would have to wait at least a couple more years. Still it had been the same thing with the girl.

The man's eye drew together at the thought of the brunette girl. He had invested a lot of dark eco into that brat and thanks to that traitorous bastard, Torn, she had gotten away from him.

Still if he believed what that old soothsayer had shown him then she would suit his purposes just fine. He had waited four years for this, he could stand to wait a couple more.

. . .

**Four years earlier…**

_It had only been a few months after the takeover but the new ruler of Haven still didn't have a complete plan to get rid of the metal head threat. He knew he would have to come up with some kind of super weapon but Baron Praxis didn't know what that super weapon would be at this point. He was in the process of having a large bomb built that could be dropped into metal head nest. _

_The man grunted as he swung his leg over the zoomer before walking down the steep ramp into the bazaar. A group of guards had reported an old woman had a tent set up and when the ordered her to leave her monkaw told them that she wanted to speak to the Baron, that she knew the solution to his problem. _

'_This is a waste of time,' the man thought angrily stomping as he walked. 'There's still a lot of work to be done if the takeover is going to be a success and I'm doing most of the work myself…'_

_He stopped as he rounded the corner. Indeed there was a large, beige tent sitting back in a corner but still taking up most of the square area. Two guards were waiting for him at the entrance of the entrance of the tent. They gave a quick salute as the Baron ducked inside. _

_The inside of the tent was full of strange knickknacks sitting on the floor as well as hanging from the wooden supports that held up the canvas. Sitting on a rug with her legs crossed was the oldest looking women he had ever seen. She look frail and her skin hung off her like an oversized sweater. Her long ears sagged and she sat hunched over making her frame look smaller. When she finally decided to look up he saw that her eyes were milky white telling him that she was obviously blind. And just like the guards had reported, sitting in the soothsayer's strange bowl looking hat was a colorful monkaw. _

_The woman's hand began moving in a strange, fluid motion with bright blue lights leaving her fingertips. The monkaw looked down at her watching the movements before looking back to the Baron. _

"_Onin says thank you for coming, Baron Praxis," it said while rolling its eyes. "Blah, blah, blah you usual salutations. _

"_What did she mean when you told the guards that she knew how to solve my problem?" the man demanded, jumping straight to the point._

_More hand movements before the monkaw spoke again, "She means your problem with the metal heads."_

_The man raised an eyebrow at the old soothsayer. _

"_She says you will need a super weapon to defeat them," he stated, watching the signs fly. "And Onin says she can show you exactly _who_ your super weapon will be."_

* * *

**A/N: FINALLY! I blame summer classes… In Engl. 2331 we had to read Gilgamesh, The Odyssey, and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight in four weeks! And I had to write an essay… I don't like essays…**

**Anyways I'll stop complaining. I have my finals tomorrow and then I'll be a junior! Hopefully I can get this ball rolling and get the next chapter out sooner. **

**Hope you all enjoy!**


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